Do your friends and family give you a hard time about spending too much time online, calling you a loner or saying you have no social life? You and I know they're wrong, but a new study proves that time spent on the Internet can actually increase your social activity rather than create isolation, as previously thought by many, especially in the days before the popularity of Facebook and celebrities on Twitter.
photo: tapascreation
The study, conducted by the Pew Internet and American Life Project found that social networking, e-mailing and blogging can lead to larger and more diverse social networks.
- “Social media activities are associated with several beneficial social activities, including having discussion networks that are more likely to contain people from different backgrounds. For instance, frequent internet users, and those who maintain a blog are much more likely to confide in someone who is of another race. Those who share photos online are more likely to report that they discuss important matters with someone who is a member of another political party.”
The study states that though social isolation still effects roughly 6% of the population (and has since about 1985), internet usage isn't making that number grow.
In addition to confirming that internet users are more likely to reach out to those from different ethnic backgrounds, the research confirms some data already widely accepted, such as the primary reasons for use, i.e., keeping in touch with "IRL" family and friends. The group of 2,512 adults polled reported that they called each person in their close circle of friends at least 195 days in a year, and saw them in person 210 days a year. 71% of MySpace and Facebook users listed at least these same members of their core network of friends as a friend on one of these services.
The study also found that 45% of internet users are more likely to visit a coffee shop, bookstore or other public, un-isolated place where internet access is readily available for use.
The entire study's findings are pretty interesting and can be read here.
Has your internet usage caused you to be more or less social in the real world?
via Mashable
